Our dialog with stakeholders
Exchange of opinions and suggestions
The dialog with our stakeholders is a key element of our sustainability management. It helps us to understand the expectations and aspirations of our clients, shareholders, employees, and suppliers and the requirements of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), state institutions, trade unions, and other social groups and to identify trends and key issues.
Three-pronged strategy
In addition to the traditional forms of dialog with our shareholders such as our investor relations activities and Annual General Meetings, our communication with stakeholders follows a strategy that comprises three elements:
- we plan and hold events focused on key issues;
- we regularly participate in sustainability-oriented forums with NGOs and trade associations, among other groups;
- we respond to urgent issues with flexible ad-hoc measures, such as discussion rounds.
In 2009, we further intensified our dialog with stakeholders. We focused on topics such as climate change, energy efficiency, and human rights as well as business ethics – against the backdrop of the global financial crisis.
Our plans for 2010 include even more events to which we will invite representatives from politics, business, society, and NGOs to discuss issues such as climate change, renewables, and sustainability ratings. By expanding our activities, we aim to further improve the way we communicate with our stakeholders in the future.
We strive for an open and fair dialog with all our stakeholders. At the same time, this dialog enables us to become familiar with other concepts and best practices. And, above all, it helps us clearly communicate our views on current issues and increase public acceptance of our activities.
